Her Faded World
by Laser Lance 720
Summary: Inside the walls of St. Mungo's, Ginny Weasley takes in the white world she had known for so long now, the only world she really remembers.


Written for the **Triwizard Tournament** (Task Two), and the **Variety of Prompts** (Object: Wrapper)

-oOo-

In another world maybe things had turned out better for her. Maybe she'd been saved in entirety, and allowed to live her life as she always should have. Maybe she'd been allowed to explore, to fall in love, to grow old.

Maybe in another world the Ginny there had escaped the nightmare of the Chamber of Secrets unscratched. Maybe she knew more than just these four walls, and startling white halls.

The Healers had been hopeful of recovering during the first few months of her stay. She was young, they said. She'd bounce back in time.

Time hadn't returned her back to health though. No, as time went on, their faith fell away. Her family held on longer. They wouldn't surrender the memory of their young sister, of their daughter. Even when everyone else had given up on her, they hadn't.

No matter what the trauma, her father had spoken, they would get through it. A Weasley always survived – Ginny no longer remembered what a Weasley was.

But sadly there comes a time when hope just isn't enough. They still came and went; a familiar enough face of freckles and red. She got used to them. She missed them when they left. But she never quite figured out who they were.

So as always, Ginny sat on the window seal in her room. She pressed a hand against the cold glass, and imagined warmth outside. A spark of what she assumed to be magic danced between her fingers. It had been so long since she'd seen such a spark.

She didn't speak, she hadn't in so long. Silence set around her, the hum of distant music and chatter the only company. Like clockwork, she knew what that sound meant. Withdrawing herself from where she had sat, Ginny moved out of her room with wobbled steps.

The white of the halls was the same as of her room. Everything looked the same to her now. She continued down the hall, following a path she must have taken a thousand times. A Healer appeared by her side, speaking something. But Ginny didn't understand what she was saying. She never really understood what they were saying.

The woman took her hand and led her down the hall. Ginny didn't fight. She didn't know how to fight. She just knew how to walk. The woman opened the door to a large room – still the walls were a burning white. Ginny let herself be guided inside. The Healer left, but she didn't take notice.

People milled around the room, muttering to themselves or others. There were at least a dozen of them up and about. A handful of people were sat at the table. They were the ones that scared Ginny the most. They never moved. Never talked. Then again, Ginny never talked either.

Movement to her left caused her to jump. A man smiled at her with a grin as bright as the walls. His blonde hair was tinged white and grey and flopped about as he nodded in quick repetition. He held out his hand, lips moving quickly – Ginny figured he was talking. She didn't hear what he said.

She knew him though. Not his name of course, he didn't even know his name, but she knew him. He'd been there as long as she had after all. It was one of the few things Ginny was certain of. How long that had been though was something Ginny wasn't sure of.

The Nameless Man seemed to get bored with her and left. Ginny wasn't going to complain. She draped her arms around her torso as she walked towards the tables. She almost wished she'd stayed in her room. There was no one there to bother her. No familiar yet frightening faces to watch her.

Dropping into one of the tables, she looked at the pair across from her. They were a couple, both black of hair and white of face. Or at least she assumed they were a couple. They shared a room. Always sat by one another. But whenever they glanced at the other, it was like they were looking at a wall. Ginny wondered if she had that same dead look in her eyes, not that it really mattered in here.

She tapped her foot in a slow rhythm that escaped her ears, watching the people in the room. Everyone seemed to be in their own little world or trying to break into another's. It was depressing. Ginny hated it.

The Silent Woman moved. She turned, brown eyes staring far away. Even though she didn't make direct eye contact, Ginny knew the woman was looking at her. She didn't know how, she just did. The woman shifted slightly, her hand slowly rising. She placed her hand palm down on the table, and slid it towards her. About half way across the table, the woman stopped. She froze for a moment before taking her hand away, leaving a small yellow candy wrapper sitting between them. She turned back away.

Ginny didn't react for a moment, waiting for the woman to move again. It was clear that she wasn't going to. Reaching out, the ginger took the gift. Fiddling it between her fingers, she found it to be just an ordinary candy wrapper – to what she didn't know. Smiling, or at least imagining that she was smiling, Ginny slipped the wrapper into her pocket.

The Nameless Man continued to bother people. The Silence Woman didn't move again, her Silent Man never moved to begin with. There was a small commotion in the corner of the rec room, but none of them took mind.

Sitting there, as she had for the last six years, eighteen year old Ginny Weasley watched out the window as a speck of snow fell from the sky. Even the outside world was a land of faded white.

She fingered the candy wrapper in her pocket, the only real color in this white washed world.

-oOo-

So I really like this piece. It was fun to do.

But please tell me thoughts. I look forward to them. Don't be afraid to leave some good criticism. Also, I don't own Harry Potter. Don't sue me please. I don't have enough time in this semester to attend court for copyright problems.


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